Did you recently have water damage in your home? Has the water damage left your carpet soaked and stained? Water can cause big problems when it enters a home, especially if it gets underneath the carpet. There's the damage to the carpet itself, which may be very costly to replace. However, there are also health and safety issues. If moisture gets trapped under the carpet and in the carpet pad, mold can form, making the air in the home dangerous to breathe. Your first step may be to call a water restoration company. However, if they can't get there immediately, here are some tips to minimize the damage:
Get as much air on the carpet as possible.
Your first job is to air out the water-soaked carpet. The sooner that you can start this, the sooner the water will start to evaporate and the carpet will dry out. Make sure that all the vents in the area are open and then turn the air conditioning fan up as high as you can. Also, open any windows.
For more airflow, you may want to get some high-powered fans from your local hardware store and point them at the carpet. While these steps won't completely dry the area out, they will get the process started.
Put lifts under your furniture legs.
One big problem with wet carpet is that it's very vulnerable to indents and stains. This is especially true when there's something putting pressure on the carpet, like furniture. The legs of the furniture will press down into the wet carpet, creating stains or rings.
You can minimize the damage by putting something between the legs and the carpet. Folded over squares of aluminum foil are a good option, as are small wooden blocks. You could also use plastic bowls. Just set the leg in the bowl and then set the bowl on the carpet. This will reduce the pressure of the leg indentation and reduce the chance of staining.
Get a dehumidifier.
One of the other risks of wet carpet is that the moisture evaporates into the air and starts creeping behind the base of your walls. Once it gets in there, mildew and mold could form.
You can prevent that by sucking the moisture out of the air and keeping the overall humidity level down. One way to do that is with a dehumidifier, which you can buy or rent at most hardware stores. As the carpet dries, the dehumidifier pulls water out of the air and stores it in a tank. You then dump the tank down a sink or toilet when it gets full.
These steps may not get rid of all the water, but it will get you off to a good start until a water restoration company can get on the scene. For more information, contact a water restoration company.
Share23 June 2015
When I flipped on the news last winter, the last thing I thought that I would see was my own neighborhood. Unfortunately, I discovered that our entire area was directly in the path of a dangerous mudslide. Instead of relaxing and enjoying my normal morning cup of coffee, I found myself scrambling to gather together family heirlooms and emergency clothing. After the mudslide passed through, my home was in shambles. Fortunately, damage contractors helped us to make things right. If you are faced with a dire situation, don't fret. Damage recovery experts can help you to get back to normal sooner than you might think.